Nightmare
by lapetiteblonde
Summary: Pascal comforts Victoria after she wakes up from a bad dream.


Pascal tossed and turned on his side of the bed, desperately changing sleep positions every few seconds in a futile attempt to find one comfortable enough to drift off in. He tried his best not to rouse Victoria with his movements, knowing full well she's always been a light sleeper and that the two of them have had a long day. Just a few hours ago, he had taken her as his date to a charity gala in the city. This had not only marked the first event they attended together since they were teenagers, but their societal debut as a couple as well. It felt strange, surreal even, having Victoria at his side all these years later. He had always hoped their love would eventually bring them back together, but he had never truly believed Victoria would come to forgive him for his infidelity. He sure as hell hadn't forgiven himself.

Yet, here they were, sharing a bed, thirty-seven years later. So much had changed since their youth…they themselves were no longer the same two people who met at the flea market that fateful summer in Paris. Pascal had since let go of the carefree playboy who thought having a reckless reputation was better than having no reputation at all, and one look at Victoria alone indicated she had evolved from a doe-eyed young girl with good intentions to a powerful force to be reckoned with. The years had hardened them both, injecting cynicism into their once idealistic world-views and providing more room for flexibility in their respective moral compasses. Yet, through it all, the love they held for one another had remained constant. It was the one thing that never changed.

Having failed to settle on a decent enough position, Pascal rolled over on his side in order to face Victoria. He was still able to pick out each and every one of her features through the darkness, leading him to notice that, even in her sleep, Victoria appeared uneasy. He wasn't exactly sure what it was, but he was certain she hadn't looked this way when they'd gone to bed at his hotel the other night. Her lips seemed to be pursed together and her brow was slightly furrowed. She was such a delicate little thing, he thought to himself; a mess of contradictions. Not that Pascal had ever minded. On the contrary, he had always delighted in Victoria's quirks and elusive personality. They were two of the things that set her apart from most people and made her who she was. Given the choice, he wouldn't have her any other way.

Just as he was about to close his eyes and continue his efforts to go to sleep, Pascal heard the faintest hint of a whimper emanate from Victoria. It was so low that, at first, he thought he'd imagined it- but when another feeble moan quickly followed the sound, Pascal realized his mind hadn't been playing tricks on him after all. For a moment he contemplated waking Victoria up and pulling her from her discomfort, but when she shifted positions, he hesitated, mistaking her movement for a sign that she was about to regain consciousness. Instead, her cries became more and more frantic as she continued tossing and turning.

Unable to sit by as she suffered what he could only assume to be an extremely vivid nightmare, Pascal reached out to tuck a strand of stray hair behind Victoria's ear. He placed his hand on her check and gently moved the pad of his thumb over it in a repetitive motion with the intention of waking her up as tenderly as possible.

"Victoria?" he urged, "Réveille-toi, ma chère, il est seulement un cauchemar."

He continued caressing the side of her face as she gradually came to, furrowing her brow and stretching out one of her arms before finally opening her eyes to look at Pascal.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" he asked, the concern evident in his tone.

Victoria blinked tiredly before nodding, "It was just a bad dream. Did I wake you?"

"Non," Pascal assured her, "I just haven't been able to get any sleep."

"Is something wrong?"

Pascal shook his head, "I simply can't believe I'm here with you, is all."

"Hmm," Victoria couldn't help but smile at his response. Pascal had always known exactly what to say to melt her heart. Being with him all those years ago had stifled so many of her insecurities… his honest charm and ability to reassure her with even the slightest touch making it nearly impossible for her to doubt him. It had never occurred to her that they would eventually come together again after all of these years of being apart, but, nevertheless, she was glad they had. She missed feeling the way she did when she was with him.

"We should both get some sleep," Pascal said, interrupting her thoughts. His eyelids were beginning to feel heavy and it was already well past midnight.

"I think I'll stay up just a while longer, but don't let me stop you," her voice was calm but Pascal could tell she was hiding something. He knew Victoria far too well to be deceived by her feigned nonchalance.

"Victoria, what's wrong?"

The question seemed to take her by surprise, as if she'd forgotten how good he was at reading her, "Nothing, I just don't feel tired anymore."

It was an unconvincing lie and they both knew it.

"Chérie, dis-moi," Pascal pleaded, "do you still have nightmares?"

Victoria bit her lip as if to consider whether or not she should give him an honest answer. Things had been going well between them thus far and she didn't want to burden Pascal with her demons so soon after rekindling her relationship with him. God knows he had already helped her through enough of her problems in the past. Unloading her own personal drama onto him now would only lead him to reconsider his desire to get back together with her later.

"You don't have to worry about me, Pascal," she answered, "I'm fine."

"Victoria, s'il vous plaît. Je vous connais mieux que ça," Pascal gave her a look that indicated he was only trying to help her.

He didn't want to push Victoria, but, at the same time, he knew their relationship wouldn't stand a chance if they built it on secrets and mistrust. It was much too early for them to start keeping things from one another and he wanted to be there for Victoria whenever she needed him. To say Conrad had treated her poorly would be a gross understatement, and Pascal couldn't help but feel partly responsible for their union. Had it not been for his infidelity, he and Victoria might have been the ones to eventually marry and have children instead.

"I stopped having regular nightmares years ago," she answered honestly this time, "but recent circumstances have brought them back."

"What circumstances?"

Victoria paused, feeling a knot grow in her stomach, "I ran into Jimmy a couple of weeks ago. Patrick- we reunited last fall- went looking for him, and I…I came face to face with him several times."

Pascal's eyes widened with horror, "Did he hurt you?"

Victoria shook her head, "Not physically, no. He made advances towards me before he realized who I was and grabbed my arm when I tried to walk away from him at the gallery, but he never went farther than that."

"I'm so sorry, my love. I'm so sorry," Pascal's heart broke at the sound of her words. He couldn't imagine how difficult it must have been for Victoria to see that man after she'd spent so many years of trying to escape the pain he'd inflicted on her. Pascal had witnessed firsthand the level of trauma Jimmy Brennan's actions had resulted in and it angered him to know the bastard would never be held accountable for the irreparable damage he'd caused. Pascal had been there for Victoria through every panic attack, nightmare, depressive episode, and emotional breakdown. He had held her in his arms as she cried into his shoulder and comforted her every time the anniversary of the assault or Patrick's birthday rolled around. He knew how deeply hers scars ran thanks to Jimmy Brennan and it filled him with the most unadulterated rage he had ever felt.

"I've been trying to move past it as best I can," Victoria smiled sadly, "but it's been difficult, even though he's gone now."

Pascal perked up, "He is?"

"Mhm."

"Did you…?"

"No, Patrick was protecting me from him," Victoria admitted, "but I did let him die. Patrick wanted to call an ambulance and I refused."

"Good," Pascal said firmly, "he deserved to die."

"I just can't get these nightmares out of my head. I thought Jimmy's death would put him behind me forever, but I was a fool to think he wouldn't still manage to get to me from beyond the grave."

Pascal ran his fingers through Victoria's hair in an attempt to soothe her, "You just need time."

Victoria inched closer to him, resting her hand on his back and burying her head in the crook of his neck. She wanted to be as close to him as possible- to share his warmth, and to feel his breath on her shoulder. All her life she had been starved for affection and no one had ever indulged her as much as Pascal had. It felt good to have him by her side again. He hadn't just been her first love or her first experience with intimacy, he'd been her closest friend and most adamant supporter. Without him, she might not have been able to get through some of the things she did during her time in Paris- at least not as thoroughly. Pascal made her feel safe, and his unconditional acceptance of her was something Victoria would always appreciate.

"You're too good to me," she said trying to suppress a yawn.

A hint of a smile played on Pascal's lips as he kissed the top of her forehead, "There's no such thing, ma chère. You deserve the world, and I intend to give it to you."

Victoria chuckled, "Goodnight, darling."


End file.
